High power electronic components such as central processing units and graphics processing units generate a large amount of heat during operation. The heat needs to be dissipated to avoid overheating the component. Conventional cooling solutions include placing a heat sink or heat pipe in contact with a surface of the component, which draws heat away from the electronic component via conduction. The heat is then dissipated by convection, possibly in conjunction with one or more fans that force air over the heat sink or heat pipe. Efficient cooling solutions enable electronic components to operate at higher speeds, thereby making the overall system more efficient.
Current designs for heat sinks and heat pipes are limited in that these devices only draw heat away from a top surface of the electronic component. For example, the heat is transferred to the heat sink through conduction at the contact surface between the heat sink and the component. Increasing the size (i.e., volume) of the heat sink is not effective after a certain point because the additional material added to the heat sink is further and further away from the contact surface. The steady state conductive properties of the heat sink material limit the ability of the heat sink to draw any additional heat away from the component. Thus, there is a need for addressing this issue and/or other issues associated with the prior art.